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Time to lay this to rest....

Rev_Bubba

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Nov 23, 2001
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The simple answer......

From an accuracy point of view......Not a thing.

Well...... maybe...let me think...ummm.....

NOPE....... not a damn thing.

There a numerous reasons to use barrels of differnet lengths but accuracy is not one of them. Just choose a barrel from a well know maker and chose the style and length you want. Quality and consistency mean everything lenghth means little.

I like long barrels for Sup Air (to push into side of bunker) shorter barrels for solid barricade style speedball fields. I like quiet (well ported and therefore long) barrels for woods ball. However, this has NOTHING to do with accuracy.
 

crom-dubh

WHATEVER...
Sep 9, 2001
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Technically a longer barrel would make some differences to accuracy. It would give the ball a straighter path after acceleration. I know people might say that a sphere is rather deficient in aerodynamics but in the good old days when men fought with muskets, longer barrels made a difference.

This is pure hypothesis by me so I have the fire extiguisher ready if and when I get flamed.
 

tb-303

Shootin’ fools shootin’ fools
Oct 8, 2001
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tough one this.
i'm pretty new to p8ntball but used to shoot air rifles and shot guns in my earlier years. and my dad is a i of a balitics buff.hope i've listened adi'm right(corect me if not) Buton the outside you could say a longer barrel is more accurate but generally it ain't so. a longer barrel will increase velocity(till you get to a certain lenght) after that point the pressure infront and behind the pellet get closer and kinda cancel the velocity thing out. also a long barrel is more prone to vibrations which will effect the tragectory of the pellet leaving the barrel and therefore the accuracy will suffer.shorter barrel and thicker barrels tend not to suffer from less as much.
the thing is try them and find what you like.in target shooting most long range guys will i guess use a longer barrel but if they're good they could perform as well (if not better)with a shorter barrel.but range shooting the feel and weight is nicer with a longer barrel,but on the field it's a different story.you want manuverability(?) and you don't wanna smack your team mates with your barrel on the break!
tb-303
if you wanna read some more to see what angle i'm coming from try:-
www.tacticaloperations.com/SWATbarrel/
 

tb-303

Shootin’ fools shootin’ fools
Oct 8, 2001
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oooopppps!!!
i've just read that and i'm sorry for the lack of the Queens English in that last post. it's late (1 in the morning) and i'm doing this on my poxy dreamcast.and i type too fast for it to keep up sometimes(yep it can get that slow!) so you'll have to fill in the blanks that i've missed.
tb(need sleep)-303
 

crom-dubh

WHATEVER...
Sep 9, 2001
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OK after a little more reading I have come to the concusion that I was talking bollocks.

Oh BTW you are also wrong T-B, a paintball marker can no way be compared to a real gun.

I think the optimal length is 12-14". This gives the ball enought length to accelerate (6-8") and the rest will give it a little stability.
Anything over this will cause excess friction on the ball reducing velocity and accuracy. A well machined barrel combined with correctly sized paint will give better results than a longer, inferior barrel. So the ideal barrel would be 12-14" long with porting after 6-8" of its length.

Again feel free to tell me I am talking ****. I normally do
 

tb-303

Shootin’ fools shootin’ fools
Oct 8, 2001
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crom-dubh
point taken but i'm not sure i said a marker was comparable to a proper firearm? if thats how it reads then im sorry.i know they aint the ame thing, but balistics and physics still apply.i was saying how i kinda understand them on a basic level.and with what i'm more familiar with.but i would say a rifle has more in common to a marker than a lot of other things.

tb(does my bum look big in this?)-303
 
lay to rest

A barrel that is 12 inches has the same accuracy as a barrel that is 18 inches. Its just what length you feel comfortable using. A barrel that is 4 inches doesnt point the ball in a direction enough. And a marker needs a lot of power to push the ball through a barrel over 20 inches.:D
 

Manning26

Well-Known Member
The good (as far as I can tell;) ) Reverend Bubba is right, just because someone's barrel is twice as long as your doesn't mean that they're going to have a tighter grouping. The ballistics of a firearm are completely different than that of a paintball gun. Authentic snipers' long barrels on their rifles are there for spin on the bullet, we could get into muzzle velocity and all sorts of other mularky, but it would have zero to do with paintball. Next time you see a paintballer with an 18" barrel, just smile to yourself over the poor sap's air consumption.:)